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DINERS HIT BY SOARING PRICES
Scunthorpe Telegraph Saturday 29th March 2008
Restaurants and diners are feeling the pinch as food and drink prices continue to rise.
A fall in wheat harvests due to droughts and crop diseases across the world, has helped push prices to their highest ever levels.
Abdul Chalique, owner of the Bhujon restaurant on Robert Street, Scunthorpe, said: "It is such a worry and a struggle for everyone right now
"Prices have increased so much, it is so tough.
"I have actually been thinking about selling up, and I know a lot of other restaurant owners are thinking the same."
Mr Chalique said customers were being put off by the rises in both food and drink, spurred on by the last Budget.
"Rice used to cost £36, but now it is at least £50 for 45kgs, and flour has doubled from £7.50 for 15kgs to £15," he said.
"I have to put my prices up slightly to cover the cost, but some customers cannot afford it.
"They are often expensive for customers but what can I do?"
Colin Metcalfe, landlord of the Jenny Wren Inn, at Susworth, said: "We are having to manage what meals we choose for our menu; we are making choices to suit us and our customers.
"We are having to be as cost-efficient as we can.
"Unfortunately all costs are going up, such as energy costs - gas and electric - but there isn't any point moaning about it."
Colin McGurran, owner of Winteringham Fields, Winteringham said the increase in prices was 'eating away at profits'.
"We are already at the expensive end of the market therefore we cannot put prices up for customers," he said.
"A 20kg bag of flour now costs £40. This is a huge increase to the £29 it would have cost a year ago.
"With the economy the way it is, everyone is feeling the penny crunch."
As previously reported, restaurant owners are not the only ones affected by the crisis, as livestock farmers are also finding.
John Godfrey, a pig farmer from Elsham, said 70 per cent of his costs were feed bills.
"The price for this has doubled in the last year," he said.
Farmers claim to be losing £26 for every pig slaughtered.
Mr Godfrey added: "The increase in wheat prices is leaving people out of business. They just cannot afford to keep their pigs."
WASTE WRAPPING? I SHOULD COCOA!
Scunthorpe Telegraph Wednesday 26th March 2008
Liz Coe (50), of Winteringham, and her children Jenny and James successfully reduced their amount of packaging thrown away this Easter by buying chocolate rabbits.
The Easter bunnies are wrapped only in foil, which can be recycled.Mrs Coe said: "The bunnies are compact so they take up less space in transit and are displayed in a tray.
"We recycle the foil from Creme Eggs too.
"It is much easier to recycle now we have doorstep recycling."
FLOOD FEARS FOR RESIDENTS
Scunthorpe Telegraph Wednesday 19th March 2008
People who feared their homes could be affected by flooding attended a special event yesterday to find out more about the risks.
A total of 76 homes are under threat close to the Far Ings nature reserve at Barton-Upon-Humber.
As the Scunthorpe Telegraph revealed earlier this month, the properties are among more than 700 homes under threat of flooding after the Environment Agency said it was unable to protect them from rising sea levels over the next 25 years.
The drop-in session for people concerned about their homes was held at Waters' Edge Country Park, Barton-Upon-Humber.
Neighbours Ken Ashton and Les Ward, from Winteringham's Low Burgage, went to ask specifically about their properties.
"We are at the bottom of the hill of Low Burgage and we are just on the edge of the flood plain," said Mr Ward.
"If they are not going to maintain the Humber bank then we could be affected."
Mr Ward has lived in his home for 11 years and said when he moved in there had been no mention of any potential flooding problems in the future.
Mr Ashton said he wanted to know if the agency intended to continue to maintain the banks. "It's a serious business," he added.
But another Low Burgage resident, Richard Naylor, said he had been assured by an Environment Agency representative smaller, secondary banks would be built to protect properties.
The agency's strategy manager, Philip Winn, confirmed defences west of Far Ings would not be renewed.
He said: "It is a sparsely populated area and we are not confident we will be justified maintaining defences into the long term.
"It is unlikely we would be able to raise the defences in future beyond their existing height as sea levels rise. We expect the rate of rise to increase quite dramatically."
In the next 20 years, sea levels were expected to rise by 15cm, he said, accelerating all the time to more than a metre in the next 100 years.
Mr Winn said the present condition of flood defences in the area was 'not bad', but the expense of maintenance, coupled with the 'sparse' population, ruled the area out of future investment.
He said: "I cannot give a figure, but raising defences is very, very expensive. If there was a decision right now it would not be maintained. This is thinking in line with the way decisions are made at present. Decisions in the future may be different."
Mr Winn said each home would be looked at individually to see what could be done.
The worst case scenario would see people forced to move out as their houses were left to the mercy of the sea.
'GORDON RAMSAY, COOKING AND ME'
Scunthorpe Telegraph Wednesday 19th March 2008
A Young chef who was tutored by top chef Gordon Ramsay has been nominated for a prestigious award.
Winteringham Fields' Ryan Simpson (25) is one of six national finalists in the Roux Scholarship - one of the finest accolades in the food industry.
Ryan, who won a recent regional 'cook-off' with his lemon sole dish, expressed his delight at the achievement.
He said: "It is great to go this far. It is my dream to win the final. If you win, it catapults you so high it would be unbelievable. I think around 80 or 90 chefs who win the Roux Scholarship are Michelin chefs."
Sous chef Ryan, of Silver Street, Winteringham, has only been at the award-winning Winteringham Fields since October, but already has rich experience as a chef.
And you can catch Ryan in culinary action below:
http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid716058805/bctid1460773967
He began cooking at the age of 16, and has worked for a top establishment in Torquay, as well as for Ramsay in London and in France - where he gained lots of inspiration.
He said: "I like classical French cooking and give it a modern twist.
"I like working with fish. Fish is my passion.
"I became a chef because I am passionate about food. I always considered it a career I could go into and I love the job I am doing, rather than just have a mundane job which I would not that bothered about.
"To be a good chef I think you have to be hard-working, passionate about food and highly ambitious.
"Working at Winteringham Fields is great. The ambiance is brilliant, the surroundings are perfect, with a great kitchen and great management."
And of his time with Ramsay, he added: "He was a nice guy - very talented - and he didn't shout."
The Roux Scholarship is considered the ultimate British competition for chefs. Winners receive first class training from the cream of the industry, and bring their expertise back to their place of work.
To enter, participants send in a written paper entry, and then enter a series of cook-offs, where dishes are judged for their overall balance - including taste and skill of cooking.
Winteringham Fields owner Colin McGurran (31) said: "It is great the chefs are working hard to be the best. I think we are all about getting the flavour right and not being too fussy - just producing good cooked food."
The national final for the Roux Scholarship is on March 31.
Chef hungry to impress the judges in national competition
icCoventry 12th March 2008
By Steve Evans
NUNEATON chef Ryan Simpson has won through to the final six in the UK's top competition for chefs - the world-famous Roux Scholarship.
He is now cooking for the prestigious title of 2008 Roux Scholar and will be judged by some of the country's most revered chefs, including Heston Blumenthal, Gary Rhodes, Andrew Fairlie, David Nicholls and Brian Turner.
Ryan, aged 25, whose parents Paul and Moira live in Nuneaton, said: "I am thrilled to have won through - and now I'm really hungry for the final."
A former pupil at St Francis RC Primary School in Bedworth and St Thomas More RC School in Nuneaton, he went on to study professional cookery at Nuneaton's North Warwickshire and Hinckley College.
He now works as the sous chef at the Winteringham Fields restaurant in Lincolnshire.
Ryan will be cooking for the title at Westminster Kingsway College in London on March 31.
He won his place in the final at a regional heat in Birmingham when he cooked his recipe for lemon sole, as well as a dessert from a box of ingredients only given to him on the day.
The Roux competition celebrates its first quarter-century this year.
In that time, it has seen many talented chefs scale great culinary heights with career guidance and mentoring from the Roux family.
If Ryan clinches the scholarship, he will win £5,000 to be used to further his culinary education, plus up to three months training at a three Michelin star establishment in Europe, and trips to New York, Champagne and Milan.
The first Roux Scholar was Andrew Fairlie, back in 1984. Now a member of the competition's judging panel, his own restaurant at the Gleneagles Hotel is Scotland's most acclaimed, with two Michelin stars.
Many Roux Scholars have opened their own restaurants and five other scholars have Michelin stars.
ECO-FRIENDLY FESTIVITIES
Scunthorpe Telegraph Wednesday 12th March 2008
Liz Coe (50), her daughter Jenny (11) and son James (11), from Winteringham, want to eat eco-friendly Easter eggs this year.
Instead of eggs wrapped in several layers of foil, plastic and card, Liz will opt for more environmentally friendly chocolate Easter bunnies, wrapped in a single layer of plastic.Liz said: "Over-packaging is a problem in terms of using up raw materials, filling up landfill and polluting the environment.
"The major thing is to persuade companies to use less packaging, then parents will not need to worry.
"If a relative was to give them an egg in a box of course I would allow them to eat it, but we would try our best to recycle all the packaging."
James, who gave up chocolate for Lent, said: "It has been hard over the past few weeks because I really love chocolate," he said.
He added he is looking forward to eating his favourite dark chocolate and does not care what it is wrapped in.
Roux Scholarship finalists and young guns winners revealed
www.caterersearch.com Friday 7th March 2008
The six national finalists for the 25th Roux Scholarship have been revealed.
Christopher Golding of Nahm in Belgravia; Matthew Wilkinson of Martha & Vincent in Ilkley, West Yorkshire; Daniel Cox from Restaurant Associates, the fine-dining division of Compass Group; Adam Peirson of Claridge’s hotel, London; Ryan Simpson of Winteringham Fields in Lincolnshire; and Kevin Tew from London’s Galvin at Windows will compete in the grand final at London’s Westminster Kingsway College on 31 March.
This year’s regional finals took place at University College Birmingham and Thames Valley University, and the judges included Tracey MacLeod, restaurant critic for the Independent magazine, and chefs Brian Turner and Alain Roux.
MacLeod said: “The competitors we sent through to the finals were those who struck the best balance between the flavours delivered and the visual presentation.”
The winner will receive £5,000 and the other finalists £1,000 each. All six finalists receive a £1,000 bottle of Champagne Gosset Grande Reserve and a £250 set of Global knives.
The grand final will be judged by Alain Roux, Michel Roux, Albert Roux, Michel Roux junior; Heston Blumenthal, Andrew Fairlie, David Nicholls, Gary Rhodes, Turner and MacLeod.
FLOODS: 'WE CAN'T PROTECT YOU'
Scunthorpe Telegraph Saturday 8th March 2008
ABSOLUTELY shocking' - that was the reaction from residents yesterday after hearing a cash shortage for flood defences could force hundreds to lose their homes.
The Environment Agency (EA) has revealed it only has enough money to protect 99 per cent of homes across the Humber estuary from the flooding expected from rising sea levels in the next 25 years.
In North Lincolnshire, 710 homes will go unprotected unless secondary defences can be provided by the owners themselves.
A report by the EA out yesterday shows 634 homes from Barrow Haven to East Halton will be affected, along with 59 from Whitton to Winteringham, 10 in Barton Cliff to Barton Haven and seven in Flixborough Grange.
Jane Day (63), of John Harrison Close, Barrow, was hard hit by the summer floods last year.
She was stunned by the news and said: "It's an absolutely shocking thought really. The Government has got a big pot of gold there we all contribute to all the time, but we see very little coming out of it.
"It's just dreadful."
Philip Winn, Humberside Strategist for the EA, said they wanted to warn people about the possibilities for the future.
He said: "Ultimately it could happen these people have to move home.
"It may be there are some properties where it's not viable to implement something at an individual house level and so the worst case scenario is some people would have to leave."
The agency's long-awaited Humber Strategy, a 100-year plan to manage flood risk at a time of rising sea levels, shows most of those at risk live in rural hinterlands, with towns and cities protected.
Although it includes plans for £320m investment over the next 25 years, the EA claims this is still not enough to maintain all existing defences.
But Mr Winn added: "The important thing to remember is the problems we are talking about now are a generation into the future. It's a long way ahead."
And Scunthorpe MP Elliot Morley, who was at a presentation of the Humber Strategy launch yesterday, played the issue down.
Speaking of those who could be forced to move, he said: "In the end I think that would apply to a tiny minority really.
"At the launch the agency made clear there were local solutions and they would work with local communities to explore how they could be applied."
Hundreds of homes around Hull have also been affected and plans are afoot to deal with rising tides over the next two decades.
Flood management possibilities have been drawn up for several areas in North Lincolnshire, namely: Crowle, Gunness and Flixborough, Alkborough, Winteringham Ings, and South Ferriby, as well as Barrow Haven, East Halton, Whitton, Winteringham, Barton Cliff, Barton Haven and Flixborough Grange.
Nearly 400,000 people live or work on low-lying land around the Humber estuary and current sea level rise predictions are up to 0.3 metres in the next 50 years.
Consultation is to be carried out across the Humber region with a drop-in session, where people can ask questions, arranged for March 18 at The Waters' Edge, Barton-on-Humber from 3pm-7pm.
More information is available online at www.environment-agency.gov.uk
Northern Restaurant & Bar 2008
www.caterersearch.com Friday 7th March 2008
This year's Northern Restaurant & Bar show takes place on 7-8 April 2008 at the Manchester Central (G-Mex) .
This is the Northern hospitality show and has a strong business slant and relevance to anyone operating hotels, restaurants, pubs and bars in the region. Not only has the show grown but has significantly upped its visitor quality, increasing the seniority and buying power of its attendees ensuring exhibitor rebooking is at its highest ever level.
Almost 7,000 visitors and over 200 exhibitors.
Over 80% of visitors are proprietors or senior management.
Over 75% have direct purchasing power or influence decisions.
Marcus Wareing and Sat Bains are leading the line up of chefs demonstrating their favourite recipes for visitors to Northern Restaurant & Bar and will be joined by other chefs such as Marc Wilkinson, Andrew Thompson & Ryan Simpson, Jonny Gilmore and Stephanie Moon.
Chef demonstrations at Northern Restaurant & Bar 2008
Monday 7 April: Marc Wilkinson from Fraiche in Liverpool, Marcus Wareing from Pétrus in London, Andrew Thompson & Ryan Simpson from Winteringham Fields in North Lincolnshire, Stephen Midgley from Grado in Manchester and Jonny Gilmore from The Devonshire Arms in Bolton Abbey will be taking the stage.
Tuesday 8 April: Ekamon Buasarn from Sapporo Teppanyaki in Manchester, Sat Bains from Restaurant Sat Bains in Nottingham, Dave Kennedy from Black Door in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, Stephanie Moon from Rudding Park in North Yorkshire cooking up some fabulous food and Marcus Wareing from Pétrus in a second demonstration.
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